Instance states (running, stopped, terminated) in GCP - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to check if a Compute Engine instance is currently running.

GCP

if instance.status == '[1]':
    print('Instance is running')

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

ATERMINATED

BSUSPENDED

CSTOPPED

DRUNNING

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Choosing 'TERMINATED' or 'STOPPED' which mean the instance is not running.

The status 'RUNNING' indicates the instance is active and operational.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to stop a running Compute Engine instance using the GCP Python client.

GCP

operation = compute.instances().[1](project=project_id, zone=zone, instance=instance_name).execute()

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Adelete

Bstart

Cstop

Dreset

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'start' which powers on the instance instead of stopping it.

The 'stop' method is used to stop a running instance.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the code to check if an instance is terminated.

GCP

if instance.status == '[1]':
    print('Instance is terminated')

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

ARUNNING

BTERMINATED

CSTOPPED

DPAUSED

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'STOPPED' which means the instance is powered off but not terminated.

The correct status for a terminated instance is 'TERMINATED'.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a dictionary that maps instance names to their current states.

GCP

instance_states = {instance.[1]: instance.[2] for instance in instances}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

Bstatus

Czone

Did

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'zone' or 'id' which do not represent the instance's name or state.

The 'name' attribute identifies the instance, and 'status' gives its current state.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to filter instances that are currently running and create a list of their names.

GCP

running_instances = [instance.[1] for instance in instances if instance.[2] == '[3]']

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

Bstatus

CRUNNING

Dzone

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Filtering by 'zone' or using wrong status strings.

This code collects the names of instances whose status is 'RUNNING'.

Practice

1. What does the RUNNING state of a Google Cloud VM instance indicate?

easy

A. The VM is paused and cannot be restarted

B. The VM is permanently deleted

C. The VM is active and ready to use

D. The VM is being created

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand VM states

   The RUNNING state means the virtual machine is powered on and operational.

2. Step 2: Compare with other states

   TERMINATED means stopped but restartable; DELETED means removed permanently.

3. Final Answer:

   The VM is active and ready to use -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   RUNNING = active and ready [OK]

Hint: RUNNING means VM is active and ready [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing TERMINATED with RUNNING
• Thinking DELETED means stopped
• Assuming RUNNING means VM is paused

2. Which command correctly stops a running Google Cloud VM instance named my-vm using gcloud CLI?

easy

A. gcloud compute instances stop my-vm

B. gcloud compute instances delete my-vm

C. gcloud compute instances terminate my-vm

D. gcloud compute instances suspend my-vm

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the correct stop command

   The command to stop a VM is gcloud compute instances stop.

2. Step 2: Check other commands

   delete removes the VM, terminate is not a valid gcloud command, suspend preserves memory state but is different from stop.

3. Final Answer:

   gcloud compute instances stop my-vm -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Stop VM = gcloud compute instances stop [OK]

Hint: Use 'stop' to halt VM without deleting [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using delete instead of stop
• Typing terminate which is invalid
• Confusing suspend with stop

3. Given this gcloud command output:

NAME    ZONE       STATUS
vm-1    us-central1-a  TERMINATED
vm-2    us-central1-a  RUNNING
vm-3    us-central1-a  TERMINATED

Which VM(s) can be restarted without creating a new instance?

medium

A. Only vm-2

B. vm-1 and vm-3

C. All vm-1, vm-2, and vm-3

D. None of them

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand TERMINATED state

   TERMINATED means the VM is stopped but can be restarted later.

2. Step 2: Identify which VMs are TERMINATED

   vm-1 and vm-3 are TERMINATED, so they can be restarted; vm-2 is already RUNNING.

3. Final Answer:

   vm-1 and vm-3 -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   TERMINATED = restartable VMs [OK]

Hint: TERMINATED means stopped but restartable [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking RUNNING VMs need restart
• Assuming TERMINATED means deleted
• Selecting all VMs regardless of state

4. You tried to restart a VM but got an error saying the instance does not exist. What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. The VM was DELETED and no longer exists

B. The VM is in SUSPENDED state

C. The VM is in TERMINATED state

D. The VM is in RUNNING state

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze error message

   Error 'instance does not exist' means the VM resource is gone.

2. Step 2: Match with VM states

   Only DELETED means the VM is removed permanently; RUNNING, TERMINATED, SUSPENDED still exist.

3. Final Answer:

   The VM was DELETED and no longer exists -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Deleted VM = does not exist error [OK]

Hint: Deleted VM no longer exists, causing errors [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing TERMINATED with DELETED
• Assuming STOPPED means deleted
• Ignoring error message meaning

5. You want to save costs by stopping a VM but keep its data and configuration intact for later use. Which state should you put the VM in, and why?

hard

A. RUNNING, because it keeps the VM active and ready

B. SUSPENDED, because it pauses the VM without data loss

C. DELETED, because it frees all resources immediately

D. TERMINATED, because it stops the VM but preserves data and allows restart

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand cost-saving states

   Stopping a VM saves costs but keeps data if the VM is TERMINATED.

2. Step 2: Evaluate options

   RUNNING uses full resources; DELETED removes VM and data; SUSPENDED preserves memory but standard stop uses TERMINATED.

3. Final Answer:

   TERMINATED, because it stops the VM but preserves data and allows restart -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Stop VM = TERMINATED state for cost saving [OK]

Hint: TERMINATED stops VM but keeps data for restart [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing RUNNING to save costs
• Deleting VM to save costs but losing data
• Choosing SUSPENDED instead of TERMINATED